Dispenser for stamps or other continuous strip material



Jan. 5, 1965 J. w. VAN VLIET ETAL 3,164,311

DISPENSER FOR STAMPS OR OTHER CONTINUOUS STRIP MATERIAL Filed Nov. 21, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Jan. 5, 1965 J. W. VAN VLIET ETAL DISPENSER FOR STAMPS OR OTHER CONTINUOUS STRIP MATERIAL Filed Nov. 21, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 4

inn" m .FTIRI Jan. 965 J. w. VAN VLIET E TAL 3,164,311

DISPENSER FOR STAMPS OR OTHER CONTINUOUS STRIP MATERIAL Filed Nov. 21, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Jan. 5, 1965 J. w. VAN VLIET ETAL 3,164,311

DISPENSER FOR STAMPS OR OTHER cou'rxuuous STRIP MATERIAL.

Filed Nov. 21, 1965 Sheets-Sheet 4 v TI ii! MUEQ United States 3,164,311 DTSPENSEER FGR STAMPS GR UTHER CGNTINUGUS STRE MATERIAL Jacob W. Van Vliet, Wyclrolf, N1, and William C.

Emerick, Ardsley, N.Y., assignors to The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of Maryland Filed Nov. 21, 1963, Ser. No. 326,325 1t) Claims. (Cl. 22516) The present application is a continuation-in-part of our application Serial No. 212,967 filed July 27, 1962, now abandoned. The present invention is concerned with a dispenser for stamps or other continuous strip material.

Dispensing of stamps, tickets or other strip material is quite common. Frequently, retail stores provide their customers with trading stamps, the number provided being proportional to the monetary value of the customers purchase. Upon the accumulation of a predetermined number of units, the trading stamps are redeemable for merchandise. Because of the varying quantity of stamps that must be furnished at each sale, it is important to have a stamp dispenser that is inexpensive, simple to load with spools or reels containing the trading stamps and easy to operate. Where retail stores such as supermarkets handle large numbers of customers in a relatively short period of time, it is also essential that the stamps, which may be of varying denominations, be dispensed rapidly, accurately and efiiciently.

It is therefore the principal object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved dispenser for continuous strip material which is especially adapted to dispense trading stamps and the like.

Another object of the invention is to provide a dispenser which facilitates the withdrawal and severing of a predetermined number of units of strip material from the reel.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a single dispenser capable of dispensing a plurality of difierent strip materials.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a dispenser having rapid and easy access to its interior thereby permitting simple loading and unloading of strip material with a minimum of interruption, as often as may be required.

It is yet another object of the invention to provide a dispenser which is compact and capable of holding two or more rolls of strip material in easily accessible positions whereby the material from any reel can be withdrawn through an aperture in the dispenser and severed in any desired length or number of units.

The present invention embodies a dispenser having a structure comprising a novel arrangement of two openfaced casings which are connected together by a hinge. In the folded condition, the open faces of each casing are juxtaposed to each other thereby forming a closed unitary structure. In the unfolded condition, the interior of each casing is readily accessible. Disposed in each of the casings are one or more reels having wound thereon the strip material to be dispensed. If the strip material is trading stamps, the reel preferably consists of a plurality of units of trading stamps of a particular denomination, each unit being separated from the next unit by perforations in the strip material. In this manner, one reel may contain single units of trading stamps while another reel may contain tens units of trading stamps. In addition, each casing may contain more than one reel therein. Thus, when the structure is open, access to each reel is provided quickly and easily.

Each reel is secured in the casing by a suitable retaining means which is adapted to provide easy removal hl ifi il Patented Jan. 5, 1955 and replacement of the reel when reloading is desired. The end of the strip material may be threaded past a friction or tension device and through an aperture in the side of the casing. Preferably, the casing is provided with a cutting edge afiixed thereto adjacent to the aperture and generally parallel therewith. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, a measuring scale is provided along the edge of the casing extending from the cutting edge longitudinally therefrom. Divisions are marked on the measuring scale, the distance between such divisions being equivalent to the length of the unit of strip material. In this manner, any denomination of trading stamps may be selected, withdrawn from the dispensing unit and stretched longitudinally along the measuring scale until the end of the strip measures the number of trading stamps desired to be dispensed. Slight pressure exerted on the strip material against the cutting edge will sever the desired number of trading stamps. The dispensing unit may be adapted by any suitable means to be mounted adjacent to a counter, cash register or any other convenient location for the dispensing of trading stamps.

Other objects and functional features will be made apparent from the embodiments described hereinafter, and the invention accordingly comprises the dispenser embodying the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts all as exemplified in the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in the different figures and in which, 1

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view showing a dispenser, in an unfolded condition, made in accordance with this invention. f

FIGURE 2 is a plan view showing the dispenser mounted to a fixture in a locked condition.

FIGURE 3 is a side view showing the dispenser in a locked condition and illustrating the means to dispense a predetermined number of trading stamps of different denominations.

FIGURE 4- shows a cross-sectional view of the dispenser taken on the plane 4-4 of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 5 is a plan view showing another embodiment of a dispenser, in an unfolded condition, made in accordance with this invention.

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of a portion of the dispenser shown in FIGURE 5 taken along the line ti-fi.

FIGURE 7 is a partial view showing the dispenser of FIGURE 5 in folded condition.

FIGURE 8 is a cross-sectional view of FIGURE 7 taken along the plane 8-8; showing the dispenser locking means and means for securing the dispenser to a fixture.

Referring to the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGURES 1, 2, 3 and 4, an open-faced casing 10 is connected to another open-faced casing 11 by means of a hinge 12. Although shown to be generally rectangular, the casings may also be cylindrical or of any other convenient shape. When the casing 10 is pivoted about the hinge I2, and the open faces of each casing are juxtaposed to each other and in a completely folded condition, the structure comprises a closed receptacle.

Within each casing, there is provided means for mounting one or more reels or spools upon which strip material, such as trading stamps and the like, is wound. v In the drawings, two reels are shown mounted in casing 10 and one reel is shown mounted in casing 11. It is understood, however, that the number of reels employed could be varied depending upon the requirements of any particular operation. Each reel may be similarly 'on the surface of the guide ledge 25.

e a,1aa,a11

mounted, and for simplicity only one such mounting ,means will be described.

In FIGURES 1 and 4, there is shown a reel supporting center post 13 secured to the inside of the casing, for example,'by welding. A centrally apertured hub 14,

about which is wound the strip material 15, fits slidably material 15 from unravelling from hub 14 or becoming dislodged in an axial direction. Retainer plate 2-6 may be seated on a portion of the interior of the casing by sliding the retainer plate over the center post 13. The central aperture in retainer plate 21, however, is not large enough .to fit around center post 113 and, therefore, plate 21 is centrally seated on the upstanding terminal end of center post 13. Both retainer plates 20 and 21 may be made of any suitable material, preferably a transparent plastic,'thereby permitting a person inspecting the interior of the dispenser to ascertain at a glance the amount of strip material remaining on each reel.

The complete reel assembly 22, comprising the retainer plates 20 and 21, the hub 14 and the strip material 15,

is secured in position by a screw 23 which passes through the central aperture of retainer plate 21 and threads into a tapped hole 24 in the center post 13. The central aperture in retainer plate 21 permits passage therethrough of the shank of the securing screw 23 but prevents passage of the head. Thus, the retainer plate 21 is held securely in place against the end of the center post 13 and limits axial movement or unravelling of the reel assembly 22.

A guide ledge 25, having a surface which extends inwardlyfrom the inner side of wall 26 of the casing in a direction which is generally tangential to the reel of strip material, leads to an aperture 27 in wall 26. Adjacent to the guide ledge is a leg 28 rotatably mounted on axle 29. Leg 2% preferably is provided with a rubber foot 39 secured thereto. When the dispenser is properly mounted, the leg 28 gravitationally rotates to a generally vertical position such that the rubber foot 36 rests The other strip reels are similarly mounted and have similar strip guide means.

Adjacent to the aperture 27 and generally parallel therewith is a'cut-ting edge 40 which extends generally perpen dicularly outward from the outer side of Wall 26 of the casing. In the preferred embodiment, a measuring scale 41 extends longitudinally along the outer side of wall 26 of the casing, the markings on the scale commencing from the cutting edge. It is understood, however, that, if desired, the cutting edge and the measuring scale may be mounted separately from the dispensing unit, as for example on an adjacent table or counter. Where the 'material to be dispensed is in the nature of trading 'stamps'having perforations between the individual stamps,

the measuring scale 4-1 may have appropriate divisions marked thereon,- the distance between such divisions being equivalent to the length of a trading stamp. For convenience, the numbers indicated on the scale may indicate the total value of the units being withdrawn extending from the cutting edge 40 to the end of the strip material. The other strip reels have similar cutting edges and similar measuring scales.

When the dispensing device is in a completely folded condition, the open faces of casings 1t and 11 are juxtaposed to each other and the device thereby forms a closed receptacle. To assist in mounting the receptacle a flange brace 46 is secured, for example, by weld- .ingfto the outside of the side wall 47 of casing 11.

Fixed to flange 46is a tongue 48 which slidably engages in a slot 49 of bracket 50. Preferably there is a pair of tongues 48 and brackets 50 as shown in FIGURE 2.

The bracket or brackets 50 may be mounted on the counter, along the cash register or at any other convenient place where the dispenser is intended to be located. Thus, the entire dispenser may be removed from its mounting and moved from one location to another rapidly and easily.

Lugs 51 having opening 52 may be provided on the ends of each casing so that, when .the dispenser is in the folded condition, a lock 53 may be provided to fit through the openings '52 thereby locking casing 11 to casing 11 in the folded condition to prevent unauthorized tampering with the interior of the dispenser.

In operation, the dispenser is loaded while it is in its unfolded condition. To load the dispenser shown in FIGURES 1 through 4, securing screw 23 is removed, permitting removal of the retainer plate 21. A reel or a spool of strip material 15 mounted on hub 14 is slidably fitted over the center post 13. Retainer plate 21 is then centrally positioned on the end of center post 13 and screw 23 is inserted through the central aperture of retainer plate 21 and threaded into the tapped hole 24 in the center post 13 until the head of the screw fits tight against the retainer plate 2.1. The end of the reel of strip material is then passed along the surface of the guide ledge 25 and between the guide ledge 25 and rubber foot 3d of the leg 28.

After loading, the dispenser may then be folded into a closed position and locked. In the folded condition, and with dispenser mounted vertically with hinge 12 at the bottom, leg 28 rotates downwardly as a result of the force of gravity thereby providing frictional drag against the strip material. Whenever it is desired to dispense a predetermined number of units of the strip material it is only necessary to withdraw the strip material through the aperture 27, extending it over the cutting edge 49 to the marking on the measuring scale 41 corresponding to the number of units desired to be severed. Slight pressure exerted on the strip material against the cutting edge 4d will cause the strip material to tear at the perforations, thereby providing the desired number of units of strip material. The end of the strip material attached to the reel protrudes aperture 27 and is readily accessible so that it may be withdrawn to the desired length for the next operation.

Another embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FZGURES 5, 6, 7 and 8. In this embodiment, open-faced casing 1% is connected to another open-faced casing 181 along the long dimensions thereof by means of hinges 102. Casings 1% and 101 are constructed so that when they are pivoted into a folded condition about hinges 162, the open faces are juxtaposed to each other and the casings form a closed receptacle. The casings may be constructed of a lightweight material, such as a plastic material which has the additional advantage of being easily mofded. If desired, each casing construction can be formed in a single injection molding operation.

Gne or more strip material receiving chambers Hi3, formed by cylindrical walls the, may be disposed on the inside of each casing for holding the strip material therein. The diameter of each receiving chamber 163 and the height of the cylindrical walls 184 will, of course, be suitably selected for the particular dimensions of strip material which the dispenser is intended to accommodate. The strip material 1&5 may, or may not, be wound on a central core (not shown). In either event, the strip material H25, in reel form, is placed in the receiving chamber 103. The chambers id's are disposed in the casings I96 and 1&1 so that the axes of the reels of strip material are parallel to each other when the casings are in folded condition. Cylindrical wall 194 is provided with an opening 1% for the exit there-through of the strip mate rial. For ease in unravelling the strip material N5, the receiving chamber 163 may be provided at the bottom thereof with ribs it? which keep the strip material from coming into direct contact with the interior surface of the casing.

Retaining cap 110, preferably made of transparent or translucent material and having an annular groove 111 around the periphery thereof, is adapted to snap over cylindrical wall 104 ofthe receiving chamber 103, thereby closing the top of the chamber. However, with the dispenser in unfolded condition the interior of the receiving chamber ltlli may be easily inspected to determine the amount of the strip material in the receiving chamber 103. Retaining cap 110 and annular groove 111 are so dimensioned as to provide a snug fit when the cap 110 is snapped into place over the cylindrical wall 104. Re-

moval of retaining cap 110 may be easily accomplished by manually lifting the cap off the cylindrical wall 104.

Thus, the strip material 105 is retained within the receiving chamber 103 and prevented from becoming dislodged in'an axial direction by retaining cap 110.

Guide ledges 115 and 116 have surfaces extending inwardly from the inner side of the side wall 117 of the casing, and also lead outwardly to slotted aperture 118 in side wall 117. Adjacent to the slotted aperture 118, and mounted on the outside of the side wall 117, is tearing bar 120, which may be secured to the side wall 117 by screws 121. A serrated edge 122, extending generally parallel to the slotted aperture 118, may comprise one edge of the tearing bar 120. Tearing bar 120 is mounted on the outside of side wall 117 so as to provide a small gap 123 between the undersurface of cutting bar 120 and the outside surface of side wall 117. Strip material 165, when it emerges from the slotted aperture 118, is threaded through gap 123 between the under-surface of the tearing bar 120 and the outside surface of the side wall 1117.

Measuring scale 124 extends longitudinally along the outside surface of side wall 117, the markings on the scale commencing from the serrated edge 122. The units on measuring scale 124 are spaced and adapted to correspond to the length of the particular unit of the strip material. In the embodiment shown, the measuring scale merely consists of appropriate divisions or lines on the outside surface of side wall 117 of the casing.

It is understood that one or more reels of strip material may be contained in each casing 100- and 1M and that for each such strip material reel there is a corresponding receivingchamber 103, retaining cap 110, slotted aperture 118, tearing bar 120 and measuring scale 124. The apertures, tearing bars and measuring scales are disposed on the side walls of the casing which form a common plane when the casings are in folded condition. Thus, any denomination of strip material can be selected and removed from the dispenser as it is mounted in one particular position.

To discourage unauthorized tampering with the contents of a dispenser, convenient locking means may be provided. As shown in FIGURES 5, 6 and 8, locking means may comprise one or more screws and matching threaded holes to secure casings 190 and 101 to each other in folded condition. Casing 100 is provided with a raised hub 130 having an opening therethrough 131 and one or more threads 132 formed on the inside wall of the hub 130. Matching therewith on casing 101 is suitable securing means such as a threaded screw 133 which is adapted to be loosely retained in raisedhub 134. Threaded screw 133 may be made in two parts consisting of a headed end 135 and a threaded end 136 with an axial rivet (not shown) holding the parts together. A flared portion 137 on the shank of threaded screw 133 may be provided and adapted, when the screw is withdrawn, to abut against an internal rib 138 within raised hub 134 in order to prevent the threaded screw 133 from being completely removed from the casing 101. The headed end 135 may be provided with a geometrically shaped head or an irregularly shaped head 139, such that a special wrench 140 is required when it is desired to disengage threaded screw 133 from thread or threads 132. The wrench 140 is provided with a head 141 having a recess 142 formed in the same geometrical or irregular shape of the head 139 on headed 6 end 135 such that it is adapted to thereby providing a convenient means for engaging and disengaging threaded screw 133. With screw 133 engaged with thread or threads 132, the dispenser is in locked condition. I

The dispenser may be'mounted on a wall, table or other like surface. In FIGURE 8, one such mounting means is shown. The dispenser is provided with a mounting plate 145 disposed adjacent side wall 146 of the dispenser. Mounting screw'147 is disposed in openings 148 and 149 in mounting plate 145 and side wall 146, respectively. Tightening'nut 150, applied from the inside of the dispenser, threads onto the shank of mounting screw 147 and secures mounting plate 145 to the dispenser..

Mounting plate 145 may be secured to'a mounting surface 151 by screws 152.

To load strip material in the dispenser shown in FIGURES 5 through 8, the casings 1tl0 and 101 are unfolded and retaining cap is removed. Strip material 105, generally in reel form, is placed in receiving chamber 193, and the free end of the strip material is passed through opening 196 in cylindrical wall 104, fed through slotted aperture 118 and then threaded through gap 123 under tearing bar 121 Retaining cap 110 is then snapped on to cylindrical wall 104 to prevent the strip material from being dislodged.

After loading, the dispenser may be folded and locked by engaging screw 133 with thread or threads 132. A predetermined number of strip material units of the desired denomination may then be dispensed by pulling the free end of the strip material along measuring scale 124 until the edge of the free end of strip material is parallel with the number on the measuring scale 124 corresponding to the number of strip material units desired. Slight pulling of the strip material against serrated edge 122 of tearing bar will cause the desired number of units of strip material to be separated from the reel. The end of the strip material 1195 still attached to the reel protrudes from aperture 118 and may be threaded'through gap 123 to make it ready for the next dispensing operation.

It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above, or made apparent from the preceding description, are efficiently attained, and, since certain changes may be made in the above constructions without departing from the" scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A strip dispensing device comprising, in combination,

two box-shaped casings with side walls and a bottom but open-faced, hingedly connected together, the casings being constructed and adapted to have their open faces juxtasociated with a corresponding reel for the passage therethrough of the strip material, said apertures being in side walls of said casings which form a common face of the dispenser when the casings are in folded condition, strip cutting means disposed adjacent each aperture, and a measuring scale with divisions marked thereon extending longitudinally from each cutting means.

2. A strip dispensing device as defined in claim 1 'in which the strip cutting means and measuring scale are disposed on the same side wall of the casing having the aperture, said cutting means comprising an outwardly projectmate with head 139 7, ing flange having an edge substantially parallel to the long dimension of its associated aperture.

3. A strip dispensing device as defined'in claim 1 in which thestrip cutting means and measuringscale are dis 1 se n- .csamesiewa of ecasi a'. 7

do th d 11 th ngh V11 thea er ture, said cutting means comprising an element mounted on said sidewall and separated by a small gap from said sidewall, an edge of said element comprising a cutting edge, whereby said strip material may be passed through, said smallgap between said element and the side wall and detached from said reel by a tearing action pulling away from said side wall and against'said cutting edge.

4.;A strip dispensing device as defined in claim 1 in which at least one of said'casings has means for rotatably supporting therein a plurality of reels of strip material of diiierentdenominations and the measuring scale associatedwith each reel having markings thereon correspond- .ing to the denominations on the strip material.

-5. A strip dispensing device as defined in claim 1 in which there isdisposed inside each casing means adapted to provide frictional drag to the strip material.

6. A strip dispensing device as defined in claim 1 in which there is disposed inside each casing, adjacent and leading'to each aperture, a guide surface along which the strip material is adapted to slidably extend, and means associated with the guide surface adapted to urge the strip material against said guide surface.

7. A strip dispensing device as defined in claim 1 having means onthe casings for locking them in folded condi- -tion,-the locking means comprising a hollow hub portion disposed in each casing extending toward the open face thereof and adapted to be arranged coaxially with their respective ends juxtaposed when the dispenser is in folded condition, and screw threaded locking means extending through the hollow hub portions.

8. A strip dispensing device comprising, in combination,

two open-faced casings hingedly connected together, the casings being constructed'and adapted to have their open faces juxtaposed to each other when in folded condition thereby forminga closed structure, each casing having a chamber therein adapted to contain a reel of strip material, the axes of said chambers being in parallel relationship when the casings are in folded condition, cap means removably secured to said chambers for retaining strip maiterial in said chambers, said chambers each having an opening for the exit therethrough of strip material, and each casing having a narrow aperture in a side Wall thereof associatedwith the chamber in said casing, said apertures being in side walls of said casings which form a common plane whenrthe casings are in folded condition, strip cutting means disposed adjacent each aperture and on the side wall having each aperture, said cutting means comprising an element separated by a small gap from the side material by a tearing action pulling away from said side wall and against said cutting edge.

9. A strip dispensing device comprising, in combination. two box-shaped casings'hingedly connected together, each casing having side walls and a bottom but being open-faced, the casings being constructed and adapted to have their open faces juxtaposed to each other when in folded condition with their side walls arranged in planar alignment thereby forming a closed structure, each casing having at least one cylindricallyshaped chamber therein for receiving and supporting a reel of strip material, the axes of said chambers being parallel to each other when the casings are in folded condition, cap members removably connected with each of said chambers for retaining the reels of strip material in said chambers, each chamber having an opening at the side thereof for the exit therethrough of strip material, each casing having a narrow aperture therein associated with each chamber in said casing through which the strip material may be dispensed, the apertures being located in side walls of the casings which are in planar alignment when the casings are folded, a pair of guide surfaces for guiding the strip material located in each casing adjacent each of said apertures and extending divergently inwardly a distance from said apertures, strip cutting means carried on the outer surfaces of the casing side walls adjacent each aperture, said cutting means comprising an element separated by a small -ap from the side wall on which it is disposed, an edge of said element comprising a cutting edge, and measuring scales with divisions marked thereon carried by the casings extending longitudinally from each cutting means, whereby a length of said strip material may be passed through said small gap between said element and the side wall and detached from its reel by a tearing action pulling away from the side Wall and against said cutting edge, the strip length being measured along said measuring scale.

10. A strip dispensing device comprising, in combination, two box-shaped casings hingedly connected together, each casing having side walls and a bottom but being openfaced, the casings being constructed and adapted to have their open faces juxtaposed to each other when in folded condition with their side walls arranged in planar alignment thereby forming a closed structure, a pair of posts connected to the bottom of one casing and extending normalthereto, another post connected to the bottom of the other casing and extending normal thereto, each of said posts being adapted to support a reel of strip material rotatably thereon, the axes of said posts being parallel to each other when the casings are in folded condition, means connected with each post for limiting axial movement of the reel supported thereon, each casing having a narrow aperture therein associated with each reel carried therein through which the strip material may be dispensed, the apertures being located in side walls of the casings which are in planar alignment when the casings are folded, guide surfaces for guiding the strip material located in each casing adjacent said apertures and extending genera ly tangentially to the corresponding reels, leg members rotatably supported within the casings adjacent each of said guide surfaces and operative to press the strip material from the corresponding reels against said guide surfaces as the strip material is dispensed, strip cutting means carried on the casing side Walls adjacent each aperture, and measuring scales with divisions marked thereon carried by the casings extending longitudinally from each cutting means for measuring the lengths of the strip materials as they are dispensed.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 876,866 1/08 Downing et al 22518 2,362,640 11/44 Krueger 22511 2,591,559 4/52 Krueger 225-l6 ANDREW R. JUHASZ, Primary Examiner. 

1. A STRIP DISPENSING DEVICE COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, TWO BOX-SHAPED CASINGS WITH SIDE WALLS AND A BOTTOM BUT OPEN-FACED, HINGEDLY CONNECTED TOGETHER, THE CASINGS BEING CONSTRUCTED AND ADAPTED TO HAVE THIER OPEN FACES JUXTAPOSED TO EACH OTHER WHEN IN FOLDED CONDITION THEREBY FORMING A CLOSED STRUCTURE, EACH CASING HAVING MANS FOR ROTATABLY SUPPORTING THEREIN A REEL OF STRIP MATERIAL, THE AXES OF SAID REELS BEIGN A PARALLEL RELATIONSHIP WHEN THE CASINGS ARE IN FOLDED CONDITION, SAID SUPPORTING MEANS BEING CONSTRUCTED TO PERMIT THE READY INSERTION AND REMOVAL OF A REEL WHEN THE DEVICE IS IN ITS OPEN UNFOLDED CONDITION, MEANS SECURING SAID REELS AGAINST AXIAL MOVEMENT, AND EACH CASING HAVING A NARROW APERTURE IN A SIDE WALL THEREOF ASSOCIATED WITH A CORRESPONDING REEL FOR THE PASSAGE THERETHROUGH OF THE STRIP MATERIAL, SAID APERTURES BEING IN SIDE WALLS OF SAID CASINGS WHICH FORM A COMMON FACE OF THE DISPENSER WHEN THE CASINGS ARE IN FOLDED CONDITION STRIP CUTTING MEANS DISPOSED ADJACENT EACH APERTURE AND A MEASURING SCALE WITH DIVISIONS MARKED THEREON EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY FROM EACH CUTTING MEANS. 